Shad??

You guys got me interested in trying cut shad or bluegills. I am ready to catch some bigger catfish and give up on the nightcrawler and praying for a big one to take it. I can obviously get blue gills but not sure how to catch shad. Do you cut the shad up once you got one? Do you trim the fins off the bluegills and where do you hook the gills?? I have tried chicken liver a few times with no luck. I found it hard to keep on the hook. thanks Rick.

Usually. Depends on the size. If they are only 3" or 4" I score the sides with my knife to allow blood, oils or other bodily fluids leak out so the cats can find them easier.

Do you trim the fins off the bluegills and where do you hook the gills??

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I'll partially trim one pectoral fin of the blugill to give it eratic swimming motion. I hook bluegill through the roof of the mouth through one of the holes on its "nose". I call it its nostril but I'm sure there a correct name for it. That way they stay alive and lively but you will lose some as they can more easily come off the hook.

The shad I'll cut into 3 or 4 chunks depending on the size. Make sure you try to keep the guts intact and on your hook. use the whole head, a couple parts of the midsection and tail portion. I like the mid-section and the heads best.

1) you need a cast net to catch shad. It takes some practice to throw and then you have to find places where they are at. But well worth it.
2) I don't cut my shad up until I'm ready to use it. You want the blood draining out in the water, not the ground. I have cut shad and bluegill every way possible, I believe, and have not found that one way works better than the other.
Don't forget about the heads either. They make a great meal for channels cats.

1.) use them live, whole, hooked through the tail muscle just behind the dorsal fin

2.) cut them up, and use the pieces (usually 3 pieces to every gill, the head, the body and the tail section- I prefer the head and hook it through the eyes, but just remember to always keep the hook point exposed and not buried too far down into the bait, keep it near the edges about an inch in depending on the size of your hook)

3.) you can fillet them, just cut the ribs and everything off one side and use it that way

4.) or if the bluegill is small enough (3" and smaller) you can put the whole thing on the hook and "curl" it up, run the hook through the mouth and out the tail section

Shad:

1.) sam as gills, you can use them whole- hook them the same way

2.) cut them, only on these you get more out of it because after cutting the head, you have the body which you can cut into 1 inch pieces or strips, or fillet it, but you have a "gut pocket" left after filleting, and these can be good sometimes- but if I'm after BIG cats, I will take a 5-9" shad and angle a knife and cut its tail off, and hook it through the eyes and use it that way

No need to trim the fins off any of the bait, I mean you can but I never have on gills or shad... as far as catching shad, invest in a cast net, practice in your back yard, and then check regulations as to what size you can use on lakes in your area, and have at it

Hook size is another key point in this... I always use either kahles, circle hooks, or octopus hooks in size 5/0 to 10/0

FlatheadKing and Neocats are right, the only thing i do differently when fishing live and this is just my preference, when river fishing ill hook them through the mouth so they dont drown tail hooked, and lake fishing u can pretty much hook them any way u like, but i prefer right behind the dorsilfin just below below the backbone, clip the tail, they seem to stay alive longer and have more erratic movements.

dont hesitate to experiment either ull develop ur own tactics that ull use and prefer to use and comfortable with.

Thanks again guys. You guys covered all the basis. I have seen alot of the shad before around the docks where I fish at peidmont and I even thought about getting a casting net last year, but never did. It sounds like it is worth getting one. I have caught quite a few 5lb or less catfish from the spot where I fish. Do you think the big ones are in the same area or should I try some where else? I know there are some big cats in peidmont and would like to lay into some. I live about an hour and 45 min from the area, But I go down about every other weekend come spring. I love the atmosphere down there and there is nothing like drinking a couple of beers after a hard all day fishing event and capping it off with some catfishing at night. My wife says it is supposed to be relaxing down there, but I always come home beat because I can't seem to stop fishing. Get up at 6:00 a.m. and stay up till 3. Always hoping for that next fish.

never fished that place before, but ya really wont know until u try, im sure someone will chime in that has fished there, but ur heading in the right direction to get into some big ones, also check out NeoCats thread

peidmont has some flatheads in it as well as big channels, so my suggestion would be to find an area where there is submerged timber, which is a major hang out for the big guys, or just a drastic change in the lake bottom, such as mud to rock, deep drop offs, or change in current; eddies, breakwalls, etc... but if you fish for the flatheads, I will say use live bait... they are a predator and prefer to eat live bait over cut or made baits...

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